North Branford P&Z to hear application on propane limits

By Kate Ramunni kramunni@nhregister.com @kateramunni on Twitter

Published
6:24 pm EST, Tuesday, February 17, 2015

Kristen L. Butler, Executive Director of Evergreen Woods retirement community in North Branford, representing residents at Evergreen Woods, opposes the development of the proposed J.J. Sullivan bulk propane storage tanks in North Branford during a Town Council meeting at the North Branford Intermediate School Tuesday evening, October 7, 2014. less

Kristen L. Butler, Executive Director of Evergreen Woods retirement community in North Branford, representing residents at Evergreen Woods, opposes the development of the proposed J.J. Sullivan bulk propane ... more

Photo: (Photo By Peter Hvizdak - New Haven Register)

Photo: (Photo By Peter Hvizdak - New Haven Register)

Image
1of/3

Caption

Close

Image 1 of 3

Kristen L. Butler, Executive Director of Evergreen Woods retirement community in North Branford, representing residents at Evergreen Woods, opposes the development of the proposed J.J. Sullivan bulk propane storage tanks in North Branford during a Town Council meeting at the North Branford Intermediate School Tuesday evening, October 7, 2014. less

Kristen L. Butler, Executive Director of Evergreen Woods retirement community in North Branford, representing residents at Evergreen Woods, opposes the development of the proposed J.J. Sullivan bulk propane ... more

Photo: (Photo By Peter Hvizdak - New Haven Register)

North Branford P&Z to hear application on propane limits

1 / 3

Back to Gallery

NORTH BRANFORD >> The fight to keep propane storage facilities out of North Branford — or at the least, limit what’s allowed to be stored — continues Thursday night when the Planning and Zoning Commission opens public hearing on an application for a text amendment filed by one upset resident.

The commission will meet at 7 p.m. in the North Branford Intermediate School cafeteria, when it will open the hearing on Chris Kranick’s application that calls for limits on the amount of propane that can be stored, additional notification requirements and gives the commission the ability to take into consideration the effect the propane storage application would have on surrounding properties rather than focusing on the site that is the subject of the application.

Until there is a ruling in some form from the wetlands commission, the Planning and Zoning Commission can’t vote on the application so it’s currently in limbo. But his application isn’t contingent on the J.J. Sullivan application, Kranick said.

“Thursday night’s public hearing is not about the Sullivan application, it’s about limiting and regulating the amount of propane that can now be stored on the other five lots in that I2 zone (industrial zone) as a result of allowing the Sullivan proposal,” he said.

Last August, the Planning and Zoning Commission voted to allow the storage of propane in several areas of town, including on Ciro Road. There are several other empty lots on the road, and residents fear that either J.J. Sullivan or another entity could purchase them with the intent of storing propane there.

“We propose to limit the amount of propane that can be stored on the other five lots available in that I2 zone to be 5,000 gallon tank maximum per lot, and require any applicant who desires to build another propane facility on the other five lots to obtain a special permit,” he said. “A special permit allows for public hearings to consider overall safety of future proposed facilities, taking into account safety issues, traffic studies and whether this type of development is consistent with surrounding land use.

“Again, this does not affect the Sullivan proposal in any way,” he said.

The J.J. Sullivan application also led to the formation of the Concerned Citizens of North Branford and Northford, which chronicles the happenings concerning the issue on its Facebook page.

The group worked with Krancik and attorney Keith Ainsworth on the amendment and met with zoning officials before officially filing it with the commission. The group also has hired experts to testify on its behalf at the public hearing.

They also circulated petitions that garnered more than 1,000 signatures that were presented to the Town Council, but its attorney said that the council has no jurisdiction over zoning matters and could not take any actions on behalf of the residents.

To help fund its work, the citizen’s group created a GoFundMe page, which has raised more than $4,000 to date.